Walking the Contradiction:
An Exploration of
Ecovillage Living
Introduction
Considering the threat of peak oil and global warming, some communities are pioneering alternative lifestyles in order to minimize their impact. Ecovillages provide a solution for environmental, social, and economic instability by implementing sustainable structures and practices. Ecovillages face successes and failures, and discrepancies between theory and practice in sustainable living. This article focuses on intentional communities dedicated to sustainability and utilizes experiences from five diverse ecovillages, Berea College Ecovillage, Dancing Rabbit, Earthaven Ecovillage, The Farm, and Los Angeles Ecovillage.
What is an Ecovillage?
While
researching intentional communities, we discovered that the definition of an
ecovillage is not simple. While all of the communities involved share a
commitment to sustainable living and often use similar methods to achieve
eco-friendliness, they are at varying stages in their progress. A lot of this
has to do with the fact that most ecovillages are actually retrofitting, rather
than creating communities from the ground up. According to Patricia Allison,
Earthaven Ecovillage, Dancing Rabbit, and Ecovillage Ithaca, are the only fully
formed ecovillages in the United
States that were begun with that intention.
The LA ecovillage was also created
with the intention of being an ecovillage, but was formed in already standing
structures which had to be retrofitted. The Farm formed about 35 years ago, but
has only been an ecovillage for ten years. These are important models because
retrofitting is a viable solution for the future. It is not possible at this
point, for every sustainable community to begin from the ground up, and
eventually everyone will have to live sustainably. This can only be made
possible by altering already existing structures and processes to become
eco-friendly.
Towards a Culture of Conservation
All ecovillages share a common
goal of sustainability. For Albert Bates from The Farm this means Òassuring the
evolution of human life on Earth, while in the process prejudicing the options
of our descendants as little as possible,Ó as well as ensuring this generation
is able to live out their natural life span, and the same for generations to
come. These goals are all achieved by working to bridge the gap between theory
and practice. For example, Lois Arkin from LA Ecovillage identified continuing
to work on manifesting values in daily living patterns as a major goal. In the
case of Berea College, the practice seems to be better implemented than the
theory. They are challenged with trying to create more unity in consciousness,
and intention among those living in the ecovillage. Many individuals live in
the ecovillage because it is their assigned housing rather than because they
are entering with a commitment to sustainable living.[1]
Berea hopes to create a culture of conservation so that the adults, and
especially the children who live in the ecovillage will carry on what they
learn at the ecovillage later in life.
As
well as working towards creating a sustainable ecovillage, all of these
communities have the intention of serving as educational models for other
individuals, and the world. Earthaven hopes to be a replicable model of sustainable
human culture and Dancing Rabbit hopes for their sustainable society to be an
influence on the global community by example and education.[2]
Albert Bates from The Farm identified among their projects ÒChanging the
pedagogy of higher education to orient it towards redressing the dimming
prospects of human survival on Earth in the next century,Ó and to Òshift the
food and water acquisition, trade and habitat construction paradigms to alter
the ecological footprint of homo sapiens
in a very significant way.Ó The ecovillages hope not only to create
sustainability within their own communities, but to be educators, and influence
the greater system.
Minimizing Environmental Impact
Ecovillages are creating low
impact, environmentally harmonious living situations as well as businesses and
education centers. Depending
on the surrounding environment, such as rural landscape or urban center,
ecovillages are pioneering alternative agriculture. In the more rural areas, both mountains and plains, most
ecovillages are making use of permaculture, medicinal herb gardens and full
fledged farms with minimal fossil fuel dependency. Urban communities such as the LA Ecovillage are
incorporating communal gardens that help support the food co-op in the
surrounding neighborhood.
Sustainability is often measured by
household and community consumption of energy. To minimize this impact, ecovillages are using alternative
building techniques including straw bale, cob, rammed earth, adobe, and timber
framing. Much of the material for
these projects is either reclaimed or from the land itself, such as straw,
lumber, and clay. In addition to
environmentally conscious architecture and construction, many buildings are
fitted with solar and wind power, and are thus operating Òoff the gridÓ. Many communities compost their waste
and use a Ògreen machineÓ or aquaculture to treat their grey water. Composting, energy monitoring, reuse,
and recycling are vitally important.
Many ecovillages are exploring
alternative economic structures including internal trade systems and externally
oriented businesses. Some of these
include publishing companies, magazines, food production, law firms, education
centers for ecovillage life, permaculture, natural building, and
midwifery. Some villages also have
businesses that simply support the life of the village itself, and are
supported by other members. The
internal community structure makes these exchanges possible by providing
agreements, and community meetings for discussion and decision making.
Challenges in Ecovillage Life
While all these innovations, projects, businesses, and other initiatives are positive and provide for the growth and expansion of the ecovillage community, there are many setbacks and challenges for such alternative lifestyles. The ecovillagers that we interviewed pointed to large problem areas, such as not having enough funding to start large projects. Another challenge is working within the legal system of the United States. There are regulations that inhibit alternative energy conservation such as composting human waste and grey water rejuvenation, as well as limiting building codes and property
laws.
Ecovillagers also pointed to the community structure itself and the challenge of communicating with so many people in a cooperative setting. Decisions are hard to make when there are opposing points of view and interest. For instance, one discrepancy for ecovillages stems from participants who claim to walk the talk. Lois Arkin from the LA Ecovillage discussed conflicts arising from participants who stated an intention to live more ecologically and cooperatively but failed to demonstrate commitment. For Irene DeLuna at Berea Ecovillage, annual changing of residents is contradictory to sustainability. This constant changing has prohibited long term goals from being actualized and causes each school year to be like starting over.
Ecovillages not only need money,
land and cooperation, but people and man power to support their growth. Without a growing population all other aspects
of ecovillage life are compromised. With limited membership all ecovillagers have to be committed
to basic survival needs. More members are necessary to support a thriving
community structure and culture. Lastly,
time can be the ultimate obstacle.
To quote Patricia at Earthaven Ecovillage ÒThe main problem is that we
are attempting to create a village infrastructure that should take generations
to create; to do it in one generation is absolutely unsustainableÓ.
What are the rewards?
Despite these significant
obstacles, ecovillages are successful in many of their endeavors,
environmentally, socially, spiritually and personally. In creating a sustainable community,
ecovillages educate not only their current members. Their permanent structure
is available for new generations to shape and develop more fully with the
guidance of the elders. Every year
they achieve a lifestyle of lower impact on the surrounding environment. This physical growth supports the
community solidarity and strength so that ecovillagers are empowered by their
communities to act as individuals.
Although this may not always be an initial goal, ecovillages create a
counter culture within the United States, one that helps people understand the
pollution of materialism and the poisonous nature of our society and
economy. In this way they are
breaking out of the very paradigm that we live in, and that is a tremendous
success.
Contradictions in Theory and Practice
The underlying contradiction that causes most discrepancies in theory and practice is trying to create a way of living outside of the system, while still depending on the system in place. At Earthaven Ecovillage, most members earn money outside of the village in order to have money and acquire the materials to build the ecovillage. For Thomas Kortkamp from Dancing Rabbit, ÒThe biggest disparity is one of culture and consciousness. We cannot create the sustainable world we wish to live in using the inappropriate bunk tools of consumer/industrial civilization.Ó Ecovillages simultaneously benefit and suffer from the technologies and structures of the mainstream society. Ecovillages are given little from the mainstream world on which to base their own infrastructures and contradict mainstream society. However, there are many ways in which the two worlds are still intertwined. At this point in time, it is impossible to live completely sustainably. ÒThere is nothing we do, or have, or eat, that does not rob something from the future. Consider the lead in your pencil, the plastic in your student ID card, or the cadmium in this computer, for instance. And yet, if you foreswear all of that, you give up your status as a battleship in the war of ideas and relegate yourself to one more bailer in the sinking lifeboat.Ó[3]
ÒWalking the ContradictionÓ is the culmination of an
independent class project. It was done by Carmen Lescher and Molly Thornton,
first year students at Antioch College in Yellow Springs, Ohio. We paired up
with Community Solutions, a non-profit based in Yellow Springs concerned with
community sustainability and the event of Peak Oil. We were encouraged to do an
independent project on an issue related to the concerns of Community Solutions,
which resulted in this article on the trials and tribulations of ecovillage
living. Our research consisted of basic information gathering from websites as
well as a combination of written and phone interviews with members from the
ecovillages.
Bibliography
Patricia Allison, written survey and telephone interview by author, 30 March 2007.
Lois Arkin, written survey by author, 9 April 2007.
Albert Bates, written survey by author, 19 March 2007.
Irene DeLuna, telephone interview by author , 21 March 2007.
Thomas Kortkamp, written survey by author, 24 March 2007.
www.berea.edu/sense/ecovillage/
www.communitysolution.org
www.dancingrabbit.org
www.earthaven.org
www.ena.ecovillage.org
www.thefarm.org
www.thefarmcommunity.com
www.thefarmmidwives.org
www.farmsoy.com
www.ic.org
www.mushroompeople.com
http://urbansoil.net/wiki.cgi